Dark Huntress
by i.forgive.you
Summary: Diane is the warrior of the three sisters. When Gaul rescues her and claims her as his lifemate, she must fight to find a place for herself in his world and learn to understand what she feels for him and herself. Companion to Dark Angel and Dark Power. HIATUS UNTIL COMBINED
1. Prologue

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Dark series. That all goes to the ingenuity of Christine Feehan. I do have rights to my own made up characters though.**_

* * *

"Isa, I don't feel so good," Rachel groaned. Diane looked over as her twin sister Isa rushed to their younger sister's side and cradled her head. She didn't like the fact that her little sister was so consumed. Rachel was their baby and in this case they couldn't do anything to help.

What is it Rachel?" Isa demanded in a gentle whisper. "What do you feel?"

"There's darkness. Lots of it. It's coming here. Make it go away Isa. I can't stand it." Rachel moaned.

Diane and Isa exchanged a telling look and Diane nodded. It was her duty to go out and watch over her sisters. She was the tracker, the hunter, the warrior. Diane projected her mind into the perimeter defenses and moved along them in an absent state. There were breaks along the defenses and Diane examined each with cold detachment. **We have five breaches along the outer perimeter.** Diane sent the message solely to her twin. They didn't want Rachel to know what was going on around them. She didn't want their baby to have to worry anymore about the evil of the world than she already did.

Isa gave Diane her mental acknowledgement before drawing back into her body. Diane ran to the outer perimeter and began attempting to tack the men who had intruded upon their newest home. It had been foolish on their part to buy the house and create the perimeter as they had. They were sitting ducks and whoever it was who was coming after them knew it. There was nothing concrete for her to track though. She should have been able to hunt the monsters with ease, but something almost intangible was keeping her from doing her duty to her sisters.

Isa's soft voice came into her mind like a gentle touch. **Can you track them Diane?**

**No**, Diane said immediately with a mental shake of her head. **They have something else helping them that I cannot get past. There is something very powerful at work here Isa. I believe we should be very afraid starting now.**

**I fear sister, that you are right**.As soon as Isa agreed with her, Diane could feel the fear beginning to grow inside of herself. She suppressed it harshly. There was no room for fear now. She had her sisters to be concerned about. Diane began walking normally hoping to draw the attention of the intruders. If it was a fair fight she might have a chance to win. Or there was always the possibility that she would die. Either way, it could give her sisters a chance to escape. Futile hopes she knew well.

Isa's voice came again as Diane heard the first of the men come towards her. **Diane…**

**Yes Isa?**

**Don't die.** Isa ordered. Her sister wouldn't be able to see the command in her thoughts, but Diane recognized it immediately.

**I wouldn't dream of it.** Diane assured her twin with a mental grin. It was the same evil grin that spread across her face as the first of her opponents came to her in combat.

* * *

Gaul joined his brothers on the surface in the middle of a raging storm created by his younger brother Byzantine. They had been awakened by One of their human servants was being controlled. The man's mind was active and alert, but he had no control over his body. Something that the three brothers did not like hearing. The three brothers reached into their servant's mind. The touch was demanding and feminine. _Must save Rachel. She cannot die. Rachel must live. Save her._

The touch was also human. A thing Gaul knew immediately. A thing that _disturbed_ Gaul immensely. No human, male or female, had ever before had the use of compulsion that he knew. He had considered himself learned until now. How much was there about these humans that his people needed to learn.

The three brothers followed the call and found the source. A woman who was trapped. Gaul cut off the compulsion and reached into their servants mind. **Continue on the path that she gave to you Jared.** The servant didn't hesitate to follow Gaul's order. His family had been bound to Gaul and his brothers for hundreds of years. Their loyalty was unquestioned. Gaul drew back into himself and looked at his brothers. Byzantine was coming back to them and Hadrian had an expression on his face unlike anything Gaul had seen his brother wear since he had been some two hundred years old. "_Hadrian,_" The single word was laced with a compulsion that he knew his brother would not be able to resist.

"We find and protect the woman at all costs," Hadrian ordered launching himself into the air.

Gaul and Byzantine exchanged glances. **This…**_**intruder**_** is his lifemate?** Byzantine asked.

**It would appear so. Let's follow him before he does something stupid**.Gaul sent launching himself into the air. Byzantine quickly followed as they tracked both woman and servant to find where their brother's lifemate was being held. It was an older building. The building was a warehouse on the outside of town. It looked abandoned, but the three brothers knew otherwise. Gaul watched as his brothers took animal forms, one a snow leopard and the other a Bengali tiger. Gaul chose the form of a cougar as his brothers moved to other sides of the building and enter.

The smell of old blood was thick in the air and laced with the scent of freshly spilled blood. Gaul could almost feel the anger that radiated from his brother. How long would Hadrian be able to control the beast? Would Gaul be able to stop his brother if it became necessary? The thought was one he had to take as a possibility depending on the stupidity of the humans holding the woman captive.

There was nothing in the upper open part of the warehouse, but the brothers wasted no time in that area and quickly moved to the entrance of an underground chamber. The sight demanded retribution. There were three females in the room. One was small and childlike, her body folded into a compact size as she was huddled in a cramped cage. The other two females were bound to replicas of ancient Roman crosses with gags and blindfolds. Blood ran down their bodies in tiny rivulets. One female had the gag crushed between her teeth as a knife was run down her right arm. It was the other that drew Gaul though. She was more muscled than the other two females, but she still seemed fragile to him. She held her body rigid and stiff. Her hair was cropped short and shone the color of gold. Gold mixed with the red of her blood.

Gaul didn't pause for a moment. He could not allow these glorious new sights to distract him from his mission: protecting and avenging his lifemate. One of the human males took a wicked looking instrument from a table and started towards his lifemate. The man didn't get close to her. Gaul had already launched himself at the man with his Carpathian speed reverting to his human form as he flew through the air. His hand sank into the man's chest cavity and pulled out the man's pounding heart. The man could only stare at him in shock and horror for a moment before collapsing on the ground dead. Gaul threw the heart away from him in disgust and joined his brothers in front of the final human male. The man was cowering before them even as Hadrian was compelling him to tell them what he knew.

The human gave up his knowledge quickly and readily. He confessed the purpose of him and his companion. They had been hunting for vampires. They had been sent after the twin females and believed that the younger female in the cage was merely their servant. They had been torturing the vampires believing that it was their duty. The human had been almost certain that his companions had enjoyed it. Gaul and his brothers reached into the human's mind until they had all that the human's mind. "_For your crimes, you will be give justice_." The three brothers growled as they killed the man with their power and without regret.

They left the man's husk of a body where it fell and went back to the three women. Gaul cut the bonds holding his lifemate to the cross that had held her through the torture. She ripped away the blindfold as he took the gag from her mouth. "_Calm honey,_" Gaul whispered as he took her into his arms protectively clutching her there. "_No harm will come to you while I have you_."

Hadrian held the other female who had been tied to the cross and Byzantine was cradling the frightened woman-child. "I will return soon enough." Hadrian said before taking a careful look at his brothers and their treasures.

Byzantine's smile was twisted. "It seems we were all fortunate."


	2. His Lifemate

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Christine Feehan's dark series. I do own Gaul, Diane, their families, Jared, and the humans (dead and alive).**_

* * *

Diane let herself be held by the man because she knew that she wouldn't be able to stand on her own. She had lost a lot of blood. She was in pain, but she was determined to block it out of her mind. She had her sisters to worry about. A quick, covert look around the room showed that there were four dead men. Diane didn't have long to look for a fifth body before the man holding her led the way up into the warehouse and then out of it and into the open area outside.

The man holding her turned just in time for Diane to see the man holding Isa launch himself into the air. A strangled noise came from Rachel drawing Diane's attention. The man holding her whispered something in her ear and she locked eyes with him. The second man suddenly looked up at the man holding Diane. He nodded once before launching himself in the air as well.

"Where are they taking my sisters?" Diane demanded in a soft voice.

"Your sisters are safe _cara_. Hadrian and Byzantine will not allow harm to come to their lifemates. Nor will I allow harm to come to you. It is my duty as your lifemate to see that you are always protected and cared for. Do you doubt this?"

"I don't even know you," Diane growled.

"I am Gaul Burakgazi. I am a Carpathian warrior. I am your lifemate." The man said. There was nothing arrogant in his tone. It was all simple statements of facts to him.

"Burakgazi. As in the owner of the Ilex Security Association, the famous banker, or the stock broker?"

Gaul's smile was slightly predatory. "You have heard of my brothers and I it would seem."

"Ilex is the staple of security and technology and Burakgazi isn't a common name though it is a powerful name."

"I currently own Ilex. I thank you for the compliment on my work."

"What do you three do? Rotate ownership ever few years."

"Actually it's every few decades." His tone was the same as it had been only moments before. "I was wondering how long it would take you to arrive here Jared."

The man who stepped into the open was tall and lanky with dark hair and a crisp business suit. "I came as quickly as I could Master Burakgazi. Has the situation been resolved successfully?"

"Of course. Byzantine will be in charge at the house for the next few days while Hadrian and I are indisposed. You are in charge of the clean up here. Make sure that no one can know what happened."

"Yes Master Burakgazi," Jared said tipping his head. "I'll make sure that everything is resolved quickly."

Gaul nodded curtly before launching himself up into the air in the manner of his brothers. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Diane demanded clutching to Gaul, the only solid thing within reaching distance.

"We are flying honey," Gaul said with a smile.

"I can see _that_. Now why don't you tell me where you think you're taking me?"

Gaul's chuckle was husky and entirely too arrogant. "Are you afraid little lifemate?"

"Ticked off," Diane growled. "You're kidnapping me. Remember that when you think about going to sleep."

Gaul's chuckled turned into a full out laugh. "You will not harm me, just as I cannot harm you. Nor could we lie to each other. You worry too much honey. Have faith in me."

"Wrong lifetime," Diane growled.

* * *

Gaul loved his lifemate. She was sweet and endearing. There was so much bravado. That she believed she could stand up against him made him proud to claim her as his. "Where was the fifth body?" She asked as they soared through the air.

The question caused Gaul pause. "What fifth body?"

"There were five men who took us Burakgazi. I remember it distinctly because there were five points of entrance along our perimeter and I injured one of the two who came after me. Isa informed me of three that came to her and Rachel at the house. There were five of those bastards that needed to die."

"Then there is one who has yet to die and I assure you honey, he _will_ die. No man can harm the lifemate of a Carpathian and live."

"He's mine Burakgazi. I injured him once and now it is my duty to finish the job. If he's going to die by anyone's hand, it will be mine and no others. Do you hear me?"

"You will have nothing to do with that man," Gaul hissed in her ear. "Your safety comes before everything else little mate and I will not have you risk your life over something that is mine by _right_."

"It's my family he attacked. Me who he'll threaten. It's _my_ right and no one else's." She snapped back. Fire glowed in her eyes.

Gaul landed quickly and grabbed the back of his lifemate's neck, drawing her face close to his. "_You will not endanger yourself by going after that man, _ever_._" The compulsion was sealed with a branding kiss. Hard, desperate, and complete. She was his and he would not allow her to face any harm. Gaul's lips moved down to her neck. His tongue stroked her pulse three times before his fangs sank into her skin. **You are my lifemate. I claim you as my lifemate. I belong to you. I offer my life for you. I give you my protection. I give you my allegiance. I give you my heart. I give you my soul. I give you my body. I take into my keeping the same that is yours. Your life will be cherished by me for all my time. Your life will be placed above my own for all time. You are my lifemate. You are bound to me for all eternity. You are always in my care.**

He closed the bite mark with a stroke of his tongue. A single nail extended and cut the flesh above his heart. He pressed her to him and felt pure ecstasy as she took his blood. He could feel her every emotion, her every thought. She wanted him, but she wouldn't admit it. He pulled her face away from her chest and took possession of her mouth again with another branding kiss. Her resolve weakened and it was then that he made her truly, completely, and irreversibly his.


	3. Flight and Pursuit

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Christine Feehan's dark series. I do own Gaul, Diane, their families, Jared, and the humans (dead and alive).**_

* * *

Diane woke up in a cave. There was light just beyond the entrance, but it was fading as if the sun was setting. How long had she been sleeping? More importantly, where was she? Diane looked down to see an arm draped over her side and remembered very quickly where she was. And what she had done! She had given herself to Gaul Burakgazi. What has she been thinking?! She hadn't been thinking. That was the problem. She had to leave. She had to find her sisters. Then they had to go into hiding. This time though, they would have more people after them.

Diane squirmed out of Burakgazi's arms and stood unsteadily at first. She caught herself on one the jagged rock wall next to her and waited until her head stopped spinning. She took a deep shuddering breath and stood up straight. There were knots all over her body and she was certain she was still a little sore from the torture. Sore? Diane looked down at her body. Cuts were gone or diminished until they were mere scratches. Had she really been that disoriented for so long? Suddenly, she hoped that was the answer. Any other option was too frightening to think about…even for her.

Diane looked at the trees ahead of her and ignored the growling of her stomach before she began running. It was hard going at first. The territory was unfamiliar and she was weak, but she couldn't think about that. The only thing that had ever kept her alive was running. It was her way of life, she wasn't going to give it up. It worked. Burakgazi was a dangerous factor she couldn't trust. Her mind told her that, insisted upon it and she listened to it as she did every other time.

**Rachel! Isa!** Diane called to her sisters with the hard won ease and strength. It had been an effort to touch her sisters at first, but as they had done it more and more especially while on the run. Now it would reunite them. Diane was going to exploit it to her advantage.

**Diane?** Rachel's thoughts were tentative and tired. **Are you okay? Where are you?**

**I'm coming for you now Rachel. Do you know where Isa is?**

**Here…**

It took all of Diane's self-control not to groan aloud. Her twin was so weak, she could barely touch them with her mind. It was disturbing and frightening. **Isa. You have to tell me where you are.** Diane kept her voice level and calm. **I'll come and get you, but you have to give me your location first.**

Something lashed out a Diane's mind hard and fast. It left her dizzy, but mostly unharmed. **You will not take my lifemate away from me sister.** A man's voice growled. **Go back to Gaul now and do not ever consider trying to run away again. It is not good for you sister.**

Diane stiffened as she was shut out of her sister's mind. Isa had shut her out before, but no _other_ had ever been able to intervene in their link, let alone cut them off from each other. **Rachel!** Diane snapped. Her tone was sharp, but she didn't care. She had to make sure her baby sister was there.

**Listen to Hadrian and go back to Gaul little sister. We Burakgazi do not give up our lifemates.**

This male merely pushed Diane out of Rachel's mind. She was disconnected from her sisters and she was starting to feel sick. The queasy feeling in her stomach, and the pain radiating in her body was intensifying with each step she took. Her mind longed to reach out to Burakgazi. She shook her head fiercely and kept moving. She wouldn't allow anymore Burakgazi in her mind. She would have to endure alone for the first time in her life. She would continue on without her sisters and continue living in whatever way she could. Diane took a step and there was nothing under her foot. She was falling. Why hadn't she noticed where she was going. As she hit the water, the last of her self-control slipped and her mind reached for Burakgazi.

* * *

His heart started beating. Breath filled his lungs as he came awake. But his arms were empty. A snarl ripped from his throat as he swept the area. No evil and his mate's scent was fading. **Your lifemate is reckless Gaul,** Hadrian growled.

**Take her in hand now brother before she continues to try and do foolish things.** Byzantine insisted angrily.

Gaul took the memory of his lifemates actions from his brothers minds and stiffened. She willed to leave him. She wanted to take his brothers' lifemates as well. What was she thinking?! Did she really think that she could leave him? Gaul reached out for her mind but found himself up against a hard barrier. Anger grew up in him like a slowly pulsating life. Gaul moved swiftly out into the trees and caught his mate's scent on the wind. He followed it faithfully desperate to find her. He could feel the pain of their separation. Was it harder on her? Even through his anger, he prayed it was not.

Her mind reached out to his and embraced it. He felt as she hit water and was surrounded by it. Gaul launched himself forward with all the speed he could gather towards her. He could feel her slipping away. He would _not_ allow her to die. Gaul threw himself off the small cliff and into the water. He found her quickly and held her limp body to him. Gaul took her to the shore and went into her mind.

**I want to sleep Burakgazi,** her voice was quiet and lazy. **We can have peace…won't that be nice?**

**You will not die,** Gaul ordered. **Breath!**

**Peace!** He could hear the pain her thoughts. He couldn't let her die though. Not when he had just found her.

_**Breathe!**_ The compulsion was too strong to overcome. She dragged air in and her body was raked with harsh coughs. Gaul held her close. "You will _never_ leave me again _avio päläfertiilam_"

* * *

avio päläfertiilam: lifemate (Carpathian)


End file.
